Fact Check: No, Kharge wasn't left out during Priyanka Gandhi's Wayanad bypoll nomination

Hyderabad: The political atmosphere in Kerala’s Wayanad is heating up as the by-election approaches with Congress candidate Priyanka Gandhi being one of the top candidates contesting. Voting for the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency is scheduled for November 13, 2024.

Amid this backdrop, social media has been buzzing with claims that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge was left out during Priyanka’s nomination filing on October 23. Users allege that only her husband and son accompanied Priyanka to the Wayanad district collector’s office, while Kharge was reportedly kept outside. A video circulating shows Kharge standing outside a door which has added fuel to these speculations.

BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar shared the video and wrote, “Where were you @kharge Saheb? When first family Priyanka Vadra ji was filing her nomination as Cong candidate for #Wayanad. Kept outside because he is not family. Self-respect and dignity were sacrificed at the altar of arrogance and entitlement of the Sonia family. Just imagine if they treat a senior Dalit leader and party president like this, how they will treat the people of Wayanad.”

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the claim was false. All leaders, including Kharge, were present in the collector’s chamber while Priyanka Gandhi was filing her nomination.

We began our investigation by examining the Kerala Congress Facebook page, where we found several images of Priyanka filing her nomination in the collector’s office. These images clearly show her brother, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge present with her. The Facebook post also mentioned that Sonia Gandhi, KC Venugopal and Panakkad Sayyid Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal were present with them.

To verify further, we reviewed an extended video on the ANI YouTube channel that captures almost the entire nomination submission process.

At the beginning of the 20-minute video, Priyanka Gandhi appears with her husband and son. At the 4:35-minute mark, they exit, followed by the entry of Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi. Later, as KC Venugopal joins, the collector is heard stating at the 6:25-minute mark that only five people are permitted. This indicated that due to restrictions on the number of attendees during the nomination process, not everyone could enter the chamber initially.

We also checked the election commission guidelines, which clearly stated that the maximum number of individuals allowed to enter the office of the returning officer or the assistant returning officer during the nomination filing is limited to five, including the candidate.

NewsMeter also spoke with a local journalist who was present during the nomination.

“The claim that Mallikarjun Kharge was kept outside during Priyanka Gandhi’s nomination is false. At first, Priyanka went into the collector’s chamber with her husband, son and Sonia Gandhi. Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge came in later. Since only five people, including the candidate, are allowed in the chamber at one time, that’s why Kharge and Rahul were outside. Towards the end of the process, Priyanka’s husband and son stepped out, which then allowed Rahul and Kharge to come in. They were just following the election commission’s rules. Any other claims are not true,” he confirmed.

Hence, we conclude that the claim that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge was kept outside during Congress candidate Priyanka Gandhi’s nomination submission for the Wayanad by-election is false.